An Analysis of a Fast Food Experience

Today, I elected to take my lunch at a "fast food" restaurant, which will remain nameless, largely because my observations could be equally directed at most such dining places. Here goes my tale.

Many, many years ago, fast food restaurants began trending their way towards the assembly line process of order taking, food making, and food delivery. In that progression, the job descriptions of the people working at such facilities began to change. Whereas previously you might find that a cashier would take your money, make your icy cold beverage, and bag your food, as well as provide you with napkins and/or condiments, the role has slowly mutated into one of order taker only. You have to get your own icy cold beverage, and your own napkins and condiments, and chances are, somebody else is back behind the line bagging and delivering your order. Doing what I do, I get this economically. After all, in the endless search for efficiency, isn't it better/easier to train a person to do one thing than to do five things? Isn't it quicker just to hand the customer a cup and let them decide for themselves what they want to drink when standing in front of the soda fountains, rather than forcing them to decide right then and there and fill the cup for them?

All comments on whether fast food chains are actually efficient or not aside, this does lead to some interesting separation of duties. For example, this means that the person bagging the food has no idea who it belongs to and ends up shouting out to whoever may be present - "One Super Burger Meal, extra jalapenos!" until somebody comes and claims the prize. However, today I saw what has to be one of the most interesting fast food jobs ever.

The place I went had the required cashier, some poor sod in the back making the food, and a third person, whose job description I have yet to determine. The entire time that I was waiting to order and waiting for my food (which was at least long enough to make me question the "fast food" moniker), this person did one of two work-related things. The first thing was to arrange sauces. Now, keep in mind that the sauces are out for everyone to grab as many as they want, but this person was individually placing the sauces in the containers. Literally, they would grab a handful of whatever it was, and then place them one by one in a careful array of...well, I don't know, but something that was certain to be absolutely destroyed as soon as the next person reached in to grab a handful of packets. Now, I fully understand the need to have a well-presented storefront and that perceptions are important, but this to me seemed a little extreme. Nonetheless, this took the majority of this person's time as I watched.

The second thing that this person did was to watch the little green order screen and push the button to delete filled orders. I classify this as work-related simply because they were at least looking at the screen - when they weren't looking at the screen or sauce-arranging, they were doing the thing that all fast food workers seem to be able to spend amazingly inordinate amounts of time doing, which is wandering aimlessly and specifically NOT doing anything that might be construed as work related - come to think of it, this reminds me of certain governmental functions, and makes me wonder whether fast food experience is a prerequisite for, say, the Department of Motor Vehicles, or whether this is actually a necessary job skill in some areas. But I digress. Still, it is important to clarify that the person did not actually bag the orders, but simply pushed the button to delete orders once they had been filled.

I suppose it just made me question whether the search for innovation has really led to increased efficiency in all cases. I can only imagine the engineered process that must have gone behind creating such a job, and perhaps even the comments from other co-workers.

"So why can't Mary put the food in the bag again?"
"Well, she hasn't been properly trained. Right now, she's Sauce Arranger Level I and Button Pusher Level III. We can train her to put the food in the bag, but that will require hiring somebody else for the sauce arranging, and Mary is the only person who has ever obtained the Level I designation in Sauce Arranging. It just wouldn't be efficient."

Right.